The Deal
by ejanders
Summary: Belle makes a deal with the devil.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The man was almost perfect in every way. That was what Isabella could not get over. Even his teeth looked like they were made from pearls, fresh from the sea. This was to be her betrothed. His name was Gaston and he was practically perfect in every way. She felt like she needed to quickly start singing opera. Not just start singing opera, but write the song and sing it while playing all of the instruments, just to keep up with him.

Her Dad beamed at her. She knew he was in a difficult position. The country was in war and they desperately needed money and support. He was an eternal optimist, and he was confident that they could win the war. However, cold, hard reality had begun to set in, and he knew that they could not win it alone. Isabelle knew that he wanted only the best for her, that he valued her freedom and independence more than anything, which is why he wanted her to fall in love with Gaston and have everything work out so that she could marry who she wanted while helping the kingdom. So Isabella, despite the butterflies in her stomach, stepped out into the ballroom and tried to prepare herself to fall in love.

It was not hard to fall in love with Gaston. He flirted effortlessly, and was constantly charming. Within a few minutes of sitting down Isabella was in awe of him. She danced with him, talked with him, and even shared a tender moment holding hands with him. By the end of the ball her Dad was overjoyed, Gaston was his perfect self and she felt what she had not felt since the ogre wars started. Hope.

Within two months the hope that she had was all but crushed. Gaston was still the perfect fiancé; the only problem was that even with the added support of her fiancé's kingdom they were still losing against the ogres. Isabella knew something bad had happened when her father called her and Gaston into the war room. She could hear her heart beating as she walked up the steps, and there did not seem to be enough air in the room. She paused outside the door and forced herself to take some deep breaths. "This is not the end of the world." She told herself. She could face whatever was about to be thrown at her.

When she walked into the double doors, to the well-lit war room she immediately looked to her Dad. He was the eternal optimist, but she could see him struggling to stay positive. Maps, battle plans and finances were strewn haphazardly on the floor. He tried to smile in reassurance to her, like he had for all 20 years of her life but she could pick up on it. This was bad. Immediately her stomach dropped and she felt dizzy. She wanted to go back into her room and let the adults handle the catastrophe and just not think of it. She just did not want to face it, did not want to know. However, she knew those days of hiding in her room had passed. She was the princess of the realm and it was her parents and her fiancée dealing with this and damned if she was not going to give in and hide in her room like a helpless little princess.

"Isabella" her father said, gravely. She tried to respond, but she was too nervous about what he was about to say. So she just looked at him. She glanced at Gaston who had quietly come in beside her. Her perfect fiancée who always had a smile on his face was unnaturally grim.

"Isabella" her father tried again. "The war is almost lost. There is nothing we can do."

Her stomach immediately dropped. Her mind seemed to slow to a snail speed so she could not comprehend what was being said.

Her father took a breath and continued. "We have to go for our last option. We must call HIM."

Isabella immediately denied it. She knew that many lives depended on them keeping the kingdom, and not losing it to the ogres. But she had heard tales about Rumplestilksin. No matter what the deal, he always got what he wanted, and those who struck the deal always suffered. Isabella could not let her father suffer like that.

"No." She said. "There MUST be another way."

Her father's eyes seemed to grow even more tired, and her fiancée tried to step in. "Isabella please, this is the only way. We need to call him."

"No" she repeated. "We still have reserves, correct? We can still call Prince George for help. Plus, wasn't there a plea sent throughout the land for help? Someone will come!"

"NO ONE WILL COME!" Roared her optimistic father, and Isabella's heart broke. She knew how difficult this was for him, but she could not agree to calling for help from a force they did not understand. But what was the alternative? Have the ogres rip through the land? See women and children tortured, murdered raped?

"Please" she whispered. She still had hope in Prince George and his armies. She had personally met him during a ball in happier times, and she knew he would come. "Just wait one more day. I know he will come." She pleaded. Looking at both her Father and her Fiancé.

They looked at her with identical torn expressions, not wanting to see them hurt, she walked over to the desk where the battle plans were. She still had hope that this could all work out. "Our message was sent out to King George less than a full moon ago. With the muddy tracks the messengers probably did not get there until two weeks ago. King George would need time to gather the army, and march here. In the mean time, we still have the reserves that have not been called into battle, as well as the people still trickling in, willing to help. We can stave off the ogres for at least another week."

The two men in her life still looked at her with sadness, but she could see they were considering her words. It both filled her with pride that they listened to her, and filled her with nerves that they would trust her. She knew if she convinced them to wait in calling on a force that they did not understand, then it would be on her if more people got injured than were necessary. At the same time she would not be able to take it if the Dark One, as Rumplestilkskin was called, took something from her Father or Fiancee that would break them. She could not take that risk.

So she played her trump card. "I could talk to the mermaids…"

"No" her Dad said immediately, his face instantly hardening.

She took a breath, stealing herself foe hurting her Dad, but knew it must be said. She knew her mother was a great swimmer, and spent most of her childhood swimming in the ocean. Isabella inherited that gene from her, and when she got older there were always rumors. Rumors that Isabella's Mom was actually half mermaid. Rumors that a male merman deceived her mom, and that Isabella herself was the one that was half mermaid. No matter what they said, Isabella was absolutely certain that her Mom and Dad both loved her beyond anything, no matter what. However, there was no denying that Isabella had a connection with the sea, and she could use this. Mermaids were known to be fearsome fighters, and seen as their kingdom was surrounded by water, and any ogres needed to ford the bay to get to their land, having the support of the mermaids would be crucial.

Isabella tried again. "please Papa, Gaston, consider it. If I talk to the mermaids, and we enlist the recruits we can wait another week for Prince George's army. Then we won't have to call on the Dark One."

At their still torn expressions she tried one more time. "Please, I have heard the stories, his price is always too great. It will be something that we cannot give up without losing ourselves. Please, let us try this."

As Isabella held her breath the two most important men in her life looked at each other. "Ok, her Papa said, "we will give it a week."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The next morning Isabella woke up determined. Today, she was going to talk to the mermaids. She would make sure that their kingdom was saved, and none of her loved ones were hurt. She went downstairs and was surprised to see her mother, father and Gaston huddled around a table, whispering to one another.

"What's going on?" She asked. Immediately they all sprang apart guiltily. Her mother had beautiful blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, the same coloring as Isabella herself. Their appearance lent credence to the story that they were somehow descendant from mermaids, the vicious creatures known to lure sailors in with their beauty and their voice. Her father was tall, strapping and as intelligent as they came with brown hair and a muscular frame, he exuded confidence. Gaston was still the shining emblem of what a man should be. Tall, fit, brown hair, brown eyes, and those damn near perfect teeth. All of them, with all their beauty and intellect were looking at her in the same way: like guilty school children.

"What is going on?" She asked again. Looking pointedly at the three people she loved most in the world. "Nothing" her father said, trying to smile normally but again, it was lacking his normal optimism.

Gaston looked at her like she was the most wonderful thing in the world. She was instantly suspicious by the look. Sure, they were attracted to one another. He was handsome, kind, intelligent, and basically perfect. While she did not quite fit the same "perfect" mold, she did have her mothers coloring, and her Dad's sense of humor. No matter what her weight was she always seemed to be curvier than the other girls, but that was usually a plus for guys. With the current hard times they had been facing she had a small waist but was still as curvy as ever, which made her attractive in the most basic way. However, she had never had the ability to flirt, or be open. Always ending up awkward and shy whenever a guy approached her. Which was why Gaston's look was suspicious. He had never looked at her like she was wonderful; he usually just looked at her like he would any reasonably attractive girl. He had always looked at her like they could be good friends. While every once in awhile, during the few weeks of their acquaintance he would stare at her breasts longer than strictly necessary, there was no instant spark, no magnetic attraction. Just a calm friendship of two people that were suited for one another.

"Isabella" Her mother finally said. "We were just talking about your plan."

"And?" she asked. "I thought this had already been decided."

"Yes" her mother replied, without her normal radiant smile. "We were just going over logistics. We think you should go to the mermaids tonight."

"Tonight?" She asked. This was strange. Her mother was usually more than overprotective. She expected her to fight her on her desire to talk to the mermaids. She expected her to refuse Isabella from going. To have her not only agree to it, but to ask her to go at night, the most dangerous time, made no sense.

"Yes" her mother replied. "You can hide under the cover of darkness so that the ogres don't see you. Take John with you." At this Isabella smiled. John was her best friend in the world, and she planned on taking him with her anyways. If she was going to be in an awkward situation with a bunch of hostile mermaids, there was no choice but that he would be by her side. However, her parents' behavior, and Gaston's look, still worried her.

"So…you are all still on board with this? Nothing has happened while I have been asleep?"

"Of course not!" her father boomed. Gaston once again did his beautiful smile and came over and enveloped her in a hug.

"I need you all to promise me that you are telling me the truth." She said. Her parents were not known to lie, ever, and she doubted that they would ever lie to her, but their actions were still suspect, and she needed their assurances.

"Promise" they said, in sync. She was still skeptical, but no one in that room had ever lied to her before, and she had no reason to doubt them, no matter how strangely they were behaving. So she sighed and went to get ready for her trip.

John, not surprisingly, was thrilled to be getting ready for their trip to go see the mermaids.

"Do you think we will meet any hot mermen?" He asked, excitedly. She rolled her eyes. She was one of the few people who knew his fondness for men. Unfortunately, in this day and age not many people understood that sort of behavior. However, to her, she just couldn't imagine him any other way.

"Yes, and they will sing to you half naked with harps and grapes to feed you." She retorted.

"Hey, I was thinking more for you. Gaston is so squeaky clean. I think you need to get down and dirty with a hot merman before you tie the knot."

At this she couldn't help but giggle. "How does that even work…" she question aloud. He looked at her quizzically. "Well, I mean, their bottom half is fish…so…the mechanics of that.." She trailed off lamely.

He promptly burst into laughter. "I dunno" he said with a wink "I've heard the townspeople say your mom is an expert…" she promptly threw the pillow she had been about to pack at him. At least if she was going on this journey she was going with someone she trusted.

Isabella and John were both ready to go at sunset. Everything was packed. She had the horn her family had been given to call the mermaids at times of distress, and John had the map and the compass to get to the preferred spot. Even in all the turmoil and heartbreak of the last few days, she could not hide her excitement to once more be by the ocean. She had to admit, it had a certain siren call to her.

Her Mother, Father and Gaston were at the entrance ready to wish her well on her journey. She was still suspicious of their behavior, and was even more so by the nervousness they exhibited at her departure. She expected them to be nervous about her going, but this was different. The kept looking anxiously around, and laughing loudly even when nothing remotely amusing was said. Even John looked at her questioningly. He knew her family well enough to know something was different.

"Ok then" she said. "I am heading off. You guys are going to fortify the defenses with the reserves right?"

"Yes!" her mother said quickly. "We are drawing up the plans now."

"Ok" Isabella replied. "I will see you guys in a few days."

Her mother immediately burst into tears, which was not overly surprising seen as her mother was a naturally emotional person. She hugged Isabella closely and repeated "be safe, no matter what, be safe."

Her Dad pulled her into a rough hug, and while he wasn't crying he was definitely trying to repress some strong emotion. Gaston came over with his pearly white smile and Isabella immediately blushed and became awkward, giving him the awkward one shoulder hug that she always gave when she was uncomfortable. John rolled his eyes, having seen the one-should her before. She made a mental note to inform him that if he rolled his eyes every time she became awkward his face was going to end up stuck that way.

While she had no reason to doubt her loved ones, she wanted one more assurance. "Promise me, there is nothing you aren't telling me. Please. Promise me."

All three looked at her solemnly. "We promise."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

They weren't an hour in before it started storming. The storm came out of nowhere. It was one of those summer storms that was swift, deadly and dangerous. Her and John quickly took cover, as the rain pounded down. They waited for another hour but the rain kept coming.

"We have to go back!" Screamed John. "At this point the roads are ruined, and we won't be able to get there tonight! Plus if we stay here we are almost literally sitting ducks for the ogres!"

While going back so quickly in defeat did not quite appeal to Isabella, she could see the validity in his argument. They would not be able to get far in this storm, and even if the storm stopped the roads would be treacherous with everything so wet and muddy. A few more hours would not make or break their situation and, at this point, so soon into the trip, it would be smarter all around to go back and try again tomorrow. Unwilling to admit defeat, but also unable to continue on merely to sooth her pride, she nodded her head and they started the trip back home.

When they approached the castle she was surprised to see the walls boarded up. She knocked on the door and Augustus, an old soldier, popped his head out. "Augustus?" She called. "We got stopped by the storm! Can you let us in?"

"Isabella?!" He called.

"Yes!" She quickly replied, and heard the creak of the door being opened. Augustus looked nervous, which she supposed was unsurprising due to the constant war they had been apart of.

"Where are my parents?" she asked.

"Ah..uh…well they, you see miss…uh.." She looked at him patiently. She knew he was trying to cover up something, but she also knew that in his old age it wasn't worth it to try to coax it out of him. Eventually he would stutter his way to an answer. While she wanted to pity him and tell him that it was ok, and he did not have to tell her, she knew that his answer was necessary. Eventually, after much humming and hawing and "by your leaves" he got it out. "They are in the great room, ma'am."

Isabella and John rushed to the great room. Even he was unnaturally silent. Isabella, for her part, could not speak if she wanted to. The butterflies in her stomach were too great. Her parents rarely went into the great room. Even as she tried to come up with an explanation, fruitlessly trolled through all possible explanations, she could only come up with one that matched the circumstances. Her parents had lied to her. They had called Rumplestilkin. That was why her normally overprotective mother had encouraged her to go to the mermaids at night, that was the reason for the whispered conversations in the morning, and the strange look in their eyes. There would be no other reason for them to go into the great room at this time of night.

She hurried up the stairs and barged into the great room. Everyone stopped and stared. One person screamed. She could tell they were all wound up tight. Well, who wouldn't be when you summoned a magical imp, whom no one could control? A person with absolutely no limitations and, as far as Isabella could tell from the stories, no morals.

She just stood there. A million different questions came to her mind but she chose silence as her weapon. She just stood there and looked at them. Eventually her father broke. "Isabella" he creaked. After a few moments of silence, figuring he had nothing else to say but her name, she asked the obvious question. "What are you all doing here?"

Her Dad, once again, was the first to answer. "Isabella, we listened to your plan, and we thought it through, but there was no way it was going to work! Kind George is getting ready for defending his own lands once we are defeated! He won't send an army to aid us!"

Isabella turned away.

"But you promised! You all promised! We do not know what this imp will ask for! We have nothing to offer!"

"We have gold" her father replied. We went through the treasury we have enough gold.

Isabella turned away in disgust. For the first time in her life, being ashamed of her father.

"What would a magician who spins straw into gold need with MORE gold?" she queried. At this her father just stared at her. She knew he was smart enough to figure this out. He just had refused to put it together. Gold would not satisfy the imp.

Instead of being cowed her father took the opposite approach. "I am still king here and this was MY decision! I looked at the options and this is what we are to do! We will pay his price WHATEVER it may be! Understood?"

Disappointed with her whole family Isabella stayed quite for a few minutes, trying to blink back the tears so as to not make a fool of herself. What exactly she was crying about she was unsure, just that this was not right, and it would not end well. Finally, with a heavy heart she replied. "Ok"

They waited for what seemed like hours in the great room. No one said anything. Every once in awhile someone would stand up and start pacing just to sit back down again. Isabella stayed with her father. While she was still angry with him, she was also nervous of what the Dark One would ask of him. She would hate for any of her family to be hurt. She knew, deep down, that her original plan put the townspeople at risk in an empty hope to save her family harm. While that was selfish, in this moment she knew she would have done anything to save her family from harm.

They had almost given up. Everyone had started to lose any hope that they had had.

"Maybe he will still come" Isabella said. She still was not a fan of this idea, but she hated the bleakness in everyone's eyes. She wasn't sure whether she wanted him to come or not, but if those she loved wanted him to come then she would keep hope alive.

She could tell that her father had all but given up home when they heard a bang. Immediately everyone jumped up and pulled their swords out. Her mother, father and Gaston all jumped in front of her in a gesture of protection. While she found it foolish, it also swelled her heart that in this time they still worried about her safety. They all inched closer and closer to the door, and Isabella half expected a scared rat to run out and make fools of them all in their high strung state. But no. There was just silence. And then.

"Bit of a let down don't you think" Chimed a high almost child like voice. With just those few words you knew that the person speaking was powerful beyond belief, and thoroughly mocking them. She heard at least two bodies hit the floor as two of the guards feinted dead away. She turned slowly not knowing what to expect. What she saw was surprising. He was a slight man, this Rumplestilkskin. However, he exuded power and intelligence. His skin was golden-green and his eyes were dark onyx. He was dressed impeccably with curly straw-like hair framing his face. He had a wide smile, which showcased a horrible set of teeth as he did a shrill giggle showing childlike glee. Isabella immediately felt like they were just players in his little play. Just the way he looked at them implied that he was, and always would be, two steps ahead of them. She had never seen such intelligence and such sarcasm in just a look, as if he was daring them to try something, to surprise him, yet he already knew how this would turn out.

Isabella tried to catch a breath but she could not. Just by looking at the Dark One she felt a mixture of panic, relief, fear, excitement, curiosity and terror. She knew that the game was already set. He knew what he wanted, whatever that might be, and he would just toy with them like a cat with a mouse until they were at their lowest point and capitulated. She, for one, decided right then and there not to give him the satisfaction. She caught his eye, held his gaze and straightened her back. He may have the power here but she refused to be intimidated. His gaze widened slightly and he gave a little smile, as if he welcomed the challenge.

"I received a message!" He giggled. Something to the effect of "Help! Help! Can you save us?!" He shouted with a little too much enthusiasm. "The answer is…yes… I can save your little town…for a price…" Gaston pointlessly drew his sword. Isabella sighed, she did not know quite what he intended to do with the sword. And Rumplestilkskin looked at him with disgust before flicking it away.

"We sent a promise of gold" her father tried. At Rumplestilkskin's look, her father looked like he deflated, realizing that Isabella had been correct, gold would not be enough.

"You see I make gold" Rumplestilkskin chirped, clearly enjoying making a fool of her father. Isabella bristled, not being able to do much but glare at him. While she had made the same point earlier, she did not believe anyone should be able to mock her father but herself.

"My price is…" at this Rumplestilkskin paused as if for dramatic effect, she could see everyone in the room hold their breath. Then he turned to her, smiling a wicked smile, knowing, already, that he had won and said simply: "her" pointing straight towards Isabella.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Her father immediately screamed a denial, even as Isabella sighed in defeat. She felt like she was having an out-of-body experience. It was almost as if she knew this would happen all along. She was almost relieved. He would not physically torture her family or her loved ones. Of course, she was terrified for herself, but she would rather it be her than the ones she loved.

However, she could see as she turned to her father, that this would break him. He was staring at her in horror, and she knew that the events of the last days were playing out in his head. How she had begged him not to call the dark one, how she repeatedly said the price was too high. Yet he had put his foot down and now his worst nightmare was coming true. "No." He said. Even thought before he had said he would pay any price. Even though he had honestly thought he would pay any price, his daughter was not a price he could pay. "No." he repeated.

The dark one giggled. It mattered naught to him whether this little town lived or died. Indeed this was more of an amusement, Isabella could tell. She rather doubted she had any significant skills that he was desperate to get ahold of, unless reading and daydreaming somehow became the currency of the land. There was not much else she was good at.

Her loved ones were still muttering denials. Refusing the Dark One in every way they knew how. She was actually surprised by how forcefully Gaston was denying him. She did not know he cared so much. John looked on in terror because he, out of everyone, knew she would take the deal. He just stared at her as if willing her to stay, while her parents tried to figure a way out of this. Everyone was talking loudly and yelling at the dark one, but no one was looking at her.

"Ok" She said.

At first only the Dark One heard her. He turned towards her and smirked. Once again she had the feeling that she was just apart of his play. That he already knew how this would turn out and was just waiting for it to happen. Her Mother and Father were still shouting denials as if refusing to believe this was happening, although both of them already had tears streaming down their faces. She wanted to comfort them. She knew her father would blame himself, but there was no other way. She had to save her village.

"Ok" she said again, a little louder. Finally her parents slumped down in defeat and turned to her, pleading her, with their eyes, to say no, to somehow find a way out of it. Yet she knew there was no way out. She knew as soon as she had seen the Dark One. While she felt numb, she did not want to think what was next for her, she just had to think of the people she loved. Her parents, her village, she had to make sure they were safe.

The Dark One sauntered towards her in a way that was somewhere between a dance and a strut, until he was way inside her personal space. He got right up into her face and whispered "It's forever dearie."

It took her a few minutes to get ahold of her bearings. She expected his breath, so close to her face, to be rank. She had imagined him feasting on the skins of young children before he got here and would not have been surprised to see blood in his teeth. However, he smelled like herbs, and the earth. It threw her off guard and she just stared at him for a second. He immediately retreated and frowned at her, as if upset with the delay.

"What is the contract?" She said.

"Excuse me?" He said, and she got a perverse satisfaction out of it. Maybe he did not know EVERYTHING that was going to happen. He clearly had this whole situation planned out, but she had thrown him for a loop with her simple, logical, question, and she felt stronger in herself for it.

"You always have a contract, correct?" She said. "I want to read it before I sign it."

He gaped at her for a moment, but she stared straight back. She was giving her life away, she had nothing to lose at this point. Eventually, he smiled. "Of course dearie." He flicked out his hand as if about to start some strange new dance, but instead of a dance a puff of purple smoke and a contract materialized out of thin air. Isabella tried to be indifferent by the blatant display of magic, but having never seen magic so carelessly and easily used before, she did feel slightly queasy. If this man could summon things out of thin air was there anything he could not do? She mustered every bit of courage she had and walked towards him and grabbed the contract. He smirked at her as if she was a silly little child, but she would not back down.

She started to read but immediately got all twisted up. It was apparent in his speech as well as his writing that he enjoyed playing with words. While she was impressed with his intellect she knew she would not be able to figure this out. So she crossed it all out, as he stared at her, his mouth slightly open and she went and got a new scroll. On it she wrote.

"Isabella French, in consideration for the saving of her village from the ogres, and any other foe that should trespass on the Kingdom of Palery, and the saving of her loved ones from any untimely death within her lifetime, does hereby forfeits her life to one, Rumplestilkskin. In accordance with this contract she shall do anything that he should ask, within reason. He shall be responsible for feeding her at least twice a day, and giving her a bed with blankets. She shall abide by his every wish for as long as she shall live provided he does not beat, maim, rape or torture her."

She looked it over, and felt satisfied. She may have been asking a little much, especially by adding that her loved ones would not meet ANY untimely death and refusing to let him beat, maim, rape or torture her, but she figured if she were to bargain with him, she would at least start out hopeful.

She handed him the contract and tried to keep her face neutral. She did not look at the Dark One, who still wore a look of astonishment, and she felt confident to believe that this had never happened to him before. She did not look at her parents, who were staring blankly ahead trying to make sense of what had happened. She did not look at Gaston who was caressing his sword obviously trying to find a way to kill the Dark One without being noticed. She did not look at John who was looking at her sympathetically, knowing, eventually, she would give the Dark One whatever he wanted in order for him to save her family.

To her total surprise the Dark One looked up at her, smiled and said "Deal!" and let out one of his maniacal giggles, which she now assumed was his trademark. It sent chills down her spine. His quick compliance made her nervous, wondering what loophole she had allowed him in the contract, but it was too late now. She took the quill he handed to her and signed it. After which he clapped his hands in glee, like a small child. She looked at him with as much disgust as she could master and he did an over-exaggerated pout, as if her feelings mattered to him…

Her parents, once again, tried to deny the contract, although they did it halfheartedly, already knowing that they had lost. It pained Isabella to see them so broken. She knew they would blame themselves. So she went up to them and tried to think of the few words she could give to offer them comfort.

"Both of you taught me what it is to be brave and strong." She started. "Please, no one decides my fate but me" she said in a way to try to relieve her parents of the guilt they were obviously feeling. Not thinking of any other words to comfort them she simply hugged them. "I love you," she said.

She then went to Gaston, and stared at him, awkwardly. At least it was a testament to their relationship. What did you say to your arranged fiancée before being sold to a magician with gold skin? So she simple smiled and went in for a hug. He whispered: "I will get you back" which surprised her. She pulled back and looked at him, and realized he had just cast himself as prince charming. To him she was now his true love whom he was going to save. She sighed. Trust a man to only truly love you when there was an insurmountable impediment in their way, such as an unbreakable contract with the most powerful magician in the land.

She went to John next. He, surprisingly, looked the saddest. She suspected it was because he was the only one who had truly come to grips with what was happening, so it was to him that she had to speak most directly. "Take care of them," she said. They had known each other for years, been best friends since almost the day they met. He looked at her solemnly, a face which was unusual for someone who was so used to laughing. "I promise," he said, and a part of her sagged in relief. No matter what else happened she had done as much as she could to protect her family.

She turned to the Dark One with her head held high. He giggled at her with his signature childish glee and put his hand on her back, obviously mocking every gentlemanly custom in the land. "Our carriage awaits my dear," he said with falsely sincere tones. "Congratulations on your little war!" He mocked to her parents, in obvious delight. Then he smiled as they were enveloped in a cloud of purple smoke.

They emerged from a cloud of purple smoke into a cold, dark castle. She could not even take stock of her surrounding before impatiently asking her new master

"Is the war won? Did you even do anything?! Are the ogres gone?!" She almost screeched. While she was not usually a screecher she forgave herself in this moment. She figured those who had just signed their life away had a good excuse to be somewhat hysterical. He just frowned at her.

"I never go back on my word, dearie" he then grimaced and started pulling her towards some stairs. He was obviously annoyed by her questioning him, and she regretfully thought that she maybe should have held off on the questioning until after she had been assigned her room. Her heart sank the more stairs they trudged down. It was not surprising to her when they ended up at the dungeons.

"Where are you taking me?" She asked half hoping that he would shout out "surprise!" and they would be on some exotic beach in a warm dry place, but she figured that was unlikely. Instead he did his trademark giggle and said: "lets just call it…your room." She did not like the sound of that.

When they got to the coldest, darkest looking cell he let out a sinister giggle and pushed her in. She made a half attempt to argue with him, but could see that any argument would only please him more. He took a stately manner and informed her that this room is "neither torturing, maiming or raping you, I am a man of my word…" at which point he winked and shut the door. She looked around and did see a tiny mattress with a flimsy little blanket, and thought to herself: "what a horrible way to learn to be very very specific when you make a deal with the devil."

A few hours in and Isabella was terrified. She was not naturally a scared girl. Granted, she never expected stories of her bravery to go throughout the realm, but she was ordinary in her fear. Spiders were bad, but everything else she could handle to a reasonable level. It was the unknown that was getting to her. If someone told her "you will be in freezing cold for an hour" then she could suck it up and be cold, knowing that it was going to end. If someone told her "you won't eat for a day" then she would be sad, but get over it. However this, even though she was sure the Dark One would argue against it, saying that he would never break his contract by torturing her, this was torture. To be this cold, and not know if she would even be warm again. To be this hungry and not know if he would ever remember to feed her. At this point any indication that he remembered that she was even down here would be welcome. She started to curl up in herself and just stare at the door willing him to enter.

Eventually she fell asleep, and woke with a start to the sound of rattling keys. He was opening the door! She immediately jumped up. When he opened the door, he seemed surprised at the state she was in.

"You seem eager to see me?" He questioned. In truth, she was eager; she thought he had forgotten her.

"Yes!" She exclaimed. "I was worried you had forgotten you had a prisoner. You would come down here some hundred years later and wonder where this skeleton came from."

As this he cracked a grin. "Oh no, dearie the castle won't clean itself!" He exclaimed, and then started giggling as if he had just told a funny joke "well it will" he said in a secretive tone "but its just not as fun as when someone does it for you!" he yelled and skipped off. She assumed he meant for her to follow him and, in all truth, if it meant leaving that cell, she probably would have followed him to the gallows.

He gave her a quick tour of the castle, but having never been good at directions she could see herself getting lost fairly often. Eventually he took her down to the kitchen.

"Make me some tea," he commanded. "I will be upstairs in my great room, bring the tea to me there, and then I will tell you your exact duties."

"Yes sir" she replied.

As soon as she left she scurried around like a mad woman. Tea! That was simple enough. She had never made tea herself, but had watched others do so. Indeed, with a quick look around she found a tea-pot, with some tea cups. She boiled some water, and soon found some tea-leaves. She even found milk and sugar and a few pastries to put on the plate. She set them out all nice, as if she was hoping to be promoted for her work. She scowled at herself, telling herself that she was his slave and did not have to do everything perfectly for him. Yet she soon sighed, she might as well try her best, as she was taught always to do. It gave her a little pang to think of that lesson from her parents, and she hoped John and Gaston were taking care of them. Then she picked up her tray and walked slowly upstairs.

When she entered the great room she realized that Rumplestilkskin was sitting there and for all intent and purposes just waiting for her, like she were a new plaything. She was intrigued by him. He was obviously smart, crafty, witty, powerful but he played with people as if they were toys and she wondered why. She was a firm believer that there was good in everyone and she wondered what turned him evil. She strongly suspected, after the quick tour of the castle, that he was lonely, and while she wasn't sure she could forgive him for taking her away from her family, she vowed to be cordial to him no matter how childish he acted.

That promise lasted about two minutes.

"Your duties shall be light." He said, with a smile. "You shall: cook my meals, bring me tea, fetch me straw, clean the castle and…skin the pelts of the children I collect." Isabella had been nodding along preparing his tea but at that last bit she immediately dropped the cup she was holding and stared at him in horror. She would jump off the nearest cliff before she hurt a child! He smirked at her. "A quip" he said "wasn't serious."

She was immediately ashamed. He knew that she had judged him and he was poking fun of her for her swift judgment. She kneeled down to pick up the cup and immediately felt dread slide down her spine. The cup was chipped! Her first day on the job, literally her first assignment and she had already damaged his property. She had broken the Dark One's cup, and she was so ashamed she could barely look at him.

"I am so sorry" she said. "I…I…I didn't mean to. It's. That is, it's chipped. You can hardly see it." At this point she quickly looked up at him, showcasing the damage. She tried to plead, with her eyes, for him to go softly on her.

He looked at her like he had never seen as human before, as if he were utterly perplexed. "Well" he started "it's just a cup." Then he sat back in his chair with his hand in his lap and stared at her as if she were a puzzle he could not quite figure out. She flushed and quickly made him a cup of tea, taking pains to make sure she made it perfectly. She set it down and he murmured his thanks.

"I will expect breakfast here at dawn," he said, in obvious dismissal. Isabella breathed a sigh of relief. She may be sleeping in a dungeon, and she already chipped a cup, but she had not yet been turned into a toad or anything equally unnatural, so she was going to call that a success.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

She slept for a few hours but soon woke up. Whether it was from the cold, the noise of the rats scurrying around her, or her general nervousness for the morning, she knew she could not get back to sleep. She slowly crept to the door. To her surprise, it opened easily. She had half expected him to lock it by magic after she got into bed. She did not want to break her contract, seen as if she did not hold up her half of the deal, he would not have to hold up his, so she figured the only way to go about this was to try to do a good job, and not think about the fact that this morning started what likely would be every single day for the rest of her life. For a frequent daydreamer that was the most depressing part. She would never get to go on an adventure. She would never get to see the world. She would never meet her true love and get married. She had always daydreamed about her wedding, like many girls did. Both her parents would cry, yet they would be tears of joy. Not the tears of sorrow and heartbreak she had last seen on them. She quickly shook her head. It was no good to dwell on that. If this was going to be the rest of her life, then she better start on the best note she could.

After some wandering around she finally found the kitchen. Once she was in the kitchen, however, she had no idea what to do. Her mother had been well known for being able to cook amazing dishes. Indeed, for many big parties she would give the cooks the night off and just cook for her guests herself. Isabella felt a small pang thinking about her mother. She could not imagine what her overprotective mother would be feeling right now, knowing her daughter was at the mercy of a beast. Isabella quickly shook herself. There must be a cookbook around here somewhere… After some diligent searching she did indeed find a small book hidden in a cabinet with some recipes. She had watched her mother, as well as some of the cooks do a lot of the cooking at the palace so she knew the basic steps. By following what she learned and reading the cookbook she was able to make some progress. Granted, she was glad she got up a few hours early as she made quite a few failed batched, but by the time the sun was starting to peak up over the horizon she had bread, tea, eggs, pancakes and a few other concoctions from the cookbook that looked messy but smelled good and when she stole a bit (just to make sure it was ok!) they definitely tasted good.

So she was right on time as she walked into the great room to proudly deliver her breakfast. Unsurprisingly Rumplestilkskin was sitting there, waiting for her with a sly grin on his face. She greeted him with a smile. She would be damned if she would spend the rest of her life with a frown on her face.

"Good morning!" She said brightly. He instantly looked taken aback. She supposed he wanted a weeping maid that would be intimidated. She looked him straight in the eye and smiled just to prove that she would be no such weeping maid. He once again started to grin, but this one was less of a mocking grin and had a slight bit of respect in it, or so Isabella thought, even if she was wrong, it was nice to think it.

As he looked down to his meal he exclaimed "what the hell?!" Isabella immediately jumped up and looked everything over as well. Everything looked fine to her. She was not an expert at cooking, but she did eat a lot and there was nothing on that plate that she would not be comfortable eating.

"Where did you get this recipe?" He asked. She looked over and saw he was pointing to one of the dishes she got from the recipe book she found.

"I…I…I…" she stuttered, and then took a deep breath. She had done nothing wrong and refused to be cowed by him. "I found a recipe book downstairs, in the kitchen. I figured it would be ok for me to look in it seen as it was a recipe book…in a kitchen, I figured it was meant to be used." At this point she glared at him to make her point. "If you do not like it then, by all means, eat the OTHER three dishes on your plate."

He once again stared at her like she was a puzzle to be solved. She stared straight back until finally he smirked, sighed and sat down. "This is an old recipe, that I used to eat a long time ago," he whispered. Then he looked up at her aghast. She figured by that small admission he revealed more of himself than he did to most people. Not that it meant anything to her, she did not know where the recipe originated. So she plastered a smile on her face and ignored his statement.

"Is there anything else you would like before I start my cleaning?" She asked. "Yes" he said. "Go one floor up and turn into the first room on your right. That will be your room, and there are some clothes in there for you." He said quickly and then went right back to eating as if to avoid any reaction she may have to the news that she would no longer be sleeping in the dungeon. On her part she could almost cry of happiness. She knew he would probably have a heart attack if she hugged him, although the thought did flit through her mind, just to see how he WOULD react. However, she decided not to push her luck and quickly ran to her new room to check it out.


	6. Chapter 6

Once she got to her new room, she was astounded. It was not overwhelming or elegant, but it was warm, practical, well lit and ALL HERS. She could barely contain her excitement.

"Wow" she thought "two days ago I was a princess in a castle, today I am overjoyed with a tiny room and an actual bed." She couldn't help but grin. Sure her world had turned on its head, but she had never wanted a dull life anyways. She just needed to think of this as an adventure. Granted, most heroines got to return home after their adventure…but she figured she could take this one step at a time.

She skipped downstairs in a brand new dress. She had no idea how he knew her size but it fit her perfectly and matched her eyes perfectly, she noticed. This made her pause. "Does this mean he _noticed_ my eyes?" she wondered, and was surprised to find that a slight tingle of excitement enveloped her. Yet another mystery she had no business to dwell on.

"Ok! I am ready for my assignments!" she called, bounding down the stairs. Rumplestilskin was sitting at his wheel, and he looked up expectantly. His eyes widened as he took in her dress, and, while Isabella could not be certain, it seemed to her as though he may have blushed. However he soon covered it up with his normal façade.

"Well dearie no use twirling about" he said, "there is a list of chores on the scroll on the kitchen table. I expect them all to be finished by the end of the day, and I expect a noon meal, tea in the afternoon and dinner. Now carry on and try not to touch anything that you shouldn't. Would hate for you to be turned into a toad on your first day!" At this he did his shrill little giggle and went back to work.

Isabella found the tasks not overly gruesome. She encountered a few spiders while cleaning one of the upstairs rooms, which almost sent her screaming away, but she was able to master her fear. At least enough to step on them and clean them up all while bemoaning every creature that dare walk around with eight legs. She hated spiders.

By the time dinner arrived Isabella was quite proud of her accomplishments, as well as a little lonely. So she found herself almost excited to bring Rumplestilskin his dinner. At least he was some sort of social interaction.

She had made another recipe from the small cookbook she had found, and when she brought it up she was surprised to find him waiting at the table for her.

"You are going to have to find a new cookbook dearie. These recipes are for poor townsfolk." He said, but he dug into the food without hesitation.

"Well how am I supposed to find a cookbook?" she replied "unless it is hidden with the spell books I saw upstairs, and I don't think you want me testing those out. You will take one bite and end up looking like a llama."

At this he smiled. "Can't say I have ever turned anyone into a llama, but I love trying new things. Never fear dearie, upstairs, on the fourth floor is a library beyond your wildest imagination. You can look for a cookbook there. Although if any of the love stories go missing I will know who is to blame."

"Oh, so you regularly keep stock of the love stories?" She replied, causing him to snort. "Now I know the monster's secrets. When he hides himself in his castle he secretly reads himself love ballads and fancies himself a hero"

She did not know why she teased him; he could easily have locked her up in the dungeon, or given her horrible tasks to accomplish; yet he did not seem to mind the teasing. In fact there was a kind of spark in his eye that she did not think had been there before.

"No one would mistake me for a hero, dearie. I think it's the hair. Mine just refuses to swish like a good hero's hair aught." At this he looked slyly at her, and she could not contain a small giggle. Astounding, she never thought she would have the urge to giggle, in the dark castle. That night in the dungeon must have been more traumatic than she thought.

After a few moments of silence, he looked questioningly up at her. "Well are you just going to stand there and watch me eat?" he asked.

"uh, no." she replied. "I guess I'll just go back in the kitchen until you are done."

"wait" he said, as she started walking away. "provided that you do not annoy me too much, you may eat dinner with me from now on."

She waited a second for the punch line. When it never came the most logical thing she could think was to repeat what he said back to him, to make sure she was hearing correctly. "You, want…me…to eat dinner…with you?" she asked

He grunted at her. "Well I would prefer a beautiful princess who doesn't mock me, but yes. For now. Until some fair maiden needs to make a deal with me. I will eat dinner with you. It is better than you just staring at me anyways."

Isabella smiled. Perhaps this would not be too bad.

As days grew into months Isabella grew more and more comfortable with the dark castle. She had indeed found more cookbooks, and she was getting to be a proficient chef, at least she thought she was. Rumpestilskin seemed to think so as well. While he was frequently out making deals, whenever he was in the castle he always ate dinner with her.

She also seemed to be forming some sort of friendship with her master. They would always argue and mock one another, but he seemed to enjoy that almost as much as she did. He was never cruel to her. Every once in awhile something would put him in a foul temper, but he never took it out on her. He would be cranky and moody, but never cruel. Sometimes he would even be…sweet. Leaving her things she needed. When the dark castle started getting cold she found a warm cloak on her bed. When her chores took her outside she would find a new pair of boots conveniently lying around. Every once in awhile she would mention, in passing, something she missed like a food item, or a good book, and the next day it would just happen to be in the castle.

Around six months after she initially came to the castle she made the executive decision to take down the drapes covering the windows, and get some light in the castle. It may be the "Dark Castle" but she had scrubbed clean all of the cobwebs and dirt, so that it hardly fit that title any more. Adding some light wasn't going to do too much damage to the reputation.

So she schlept the large ladder from all the way in the dungeons, to the great room and set to work. Rumplestilskin was in there, spinning, as he usually was. He barely even showed any sign of noticing that she happened to be carrying a giant ladder into the hall and was proceeding to take down curtains. Eventually she decided to see if she could distract him.

"Why do you spin so much?" She asked.

He looked at her like she had grown two heads. It wasn't THAT illogical of a question, she thought.

"Well you have spun more gold than you would ever need" she elaborated.

"It helps me..forget" he replied.

"Forget what?" She asked

He took a second, starting at the straw turning magically into gold. Then he seemed to snap out of it. "I guess it worked!" he twirped, and then did his signature little giggle.

She could not help but laugh, sometimes he was so strange, but, oddly enough, she found it endearing.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Taking down these curtains!" she replied "It is almost springtime, we need some LIGHT in here." At this she gave a giant pull. Nothing.

"What did you do, NAIL them down?" she asked, exasperated.

"Yes" he replied, as if that was the most natural thing in the world.

She went to turn to him, but lost her footing. She was holding the drape, but before she could catch her balance she started to fall. She heard a small gasp of alarm before she found herself in Rumplestilskin's arms.

Her heart was beating extra fast, as if trying to keep up with the events of the moment, and she looked up at him. He looked shell shocked. He was staring at the light as if he had never seen it before then, slowly, looked down at her. His eyes held something that she had not seen before. He had been frightened for her, she realized, just as she realized he was still holding her. She had fell a few minutes ago but he was still holding her, looking at her like he had never seen her before.

"Thank you" she whispered. Her heart had not slowed, and she was curiously aware of how muscular he actually was, and how CLOSE he was. He nodded shakily, then promptly dropped her.

"No no matter," he said backing away

"I will put the curtains back up" she tried, in an effort to get the scared look off of his face.

He began to walk away but then stopped and looked back at her. "No matter, I will. I will get used to it." He said and then fervently went back to his spinning. Although, Belle noticed, he seemed not to realize that he did not have any straw on the wheel.

While nothing much changed since the day she tried to take down the curtains, at the same time everything changed. Isabelle seemed acutely aware of Rumplestilskins presence, and he also seemed unnerved whenever she got too close or leaned towards him during dinner. She would have found it amusing if she were not so aware of it herself.

Unfortunately, the peace did not last. One day, as she was cleaning the upstairs rooms, she came across a supposedly secret room. This was not, in itself, unusual. Isabelle was half convinced that the castle rearranged itself every day in a way it seemed fit. She was always finding new rooms and hidden passages. This one, however, was different. There seemed to be a riddle written on the door, and Isabelle could not, for the life of her, open the door. She tried to ignore it. All throughout the morning she tried not to think of it. However, Isabelle was not one to let a riddle go unsolved. She was too curious for that, and she found herself continuously returning to the room. Eventually she gave up and just sat down to solve the riddle.

It took her until right before she was due to begin making lunch, when she said the correct phrases in order. It was some old language but she was able to figure it out. She said the magic word and the door creaked open. At this point, she could have convinced herself not to look, but she knew a losing battle when she saw one. She inched in, and was surprised to see just a dark closet. Disappointed, she looked around to see if there was anything in the closet. All she found was a little bag with an odd looking dagger in it. She looked at it closely and could barely start to make out some writing on it, when she was roughly grabbed from behind.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?!" Rumplestilskin shouted. Isabelle had never, not once, seen him this angry, seen anyone this angry. No one had ever yelled at her like this before. Her parents preferred to tell her that they were disappointed in her, and being the sensitive person she was, that was usually enough to get her to straighten out her act.

"I'm sorry" she tried "I was just curious…"

"CURIOUS?" he cried "Did you ever THINK, did it ever even OCCUR to you that a locked room was meant to STAY LOCKED?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU HAVE DONE?!" he nearly screeched.

"Tell me…how long have you been working for her?" he asked in a deadly whisper. "Did she think to make me care for you? You are NOTHING. You will NEVER get a leg up on me!"

At this point Isabelle was confused and scared. She did not know what to do so she just looked up at him, waiting. As he looked down at her something seemed to flash across his face. Pain. Sadness. Something, yet he quickly hid it.

"Up" he said, "it's back to the dungeon for you."


End file.
